Goodness from the outside in

August is a fantastic month for rich vibrant veggie dishes and we are celebrating all the garden gems that summer has created so far.

Heat-loving crops like tomatoes, aubergine and beetroot are fantastic right now along with potatoes, cucumbers and courgettes. Dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale grow quickly in the heat so keep an eye on your crop.

A variety of plants in your diet ensures a good range of nutrients, you want to pack each mealtime out with bright colourful vegetables for lots of vitamins and antioxidants. However you eat – whether you enjoy a plant-based, gluten-free, Mediterranean, paleo, carb loaded or a flexitarian diet – vegetables should take pride of place on your plate.

Fresh or Frozen?

Unless you are harvesting the produce yourself you are unlikely to get what is truly ‘fresh’ on your dinner plate. The fresh grocery section in your local supermarket will have been picked, packed and chilled to maintain the crispness of your favourite fruit or vegetable, but from the moment it is picked from the plant, ground or tree it will start to lose nutrients. The produce is picked, stored, transported, preserved (unless organic), bundled onto the shelf and then transported by the buyer, stored for however long, cooked then finally digested.

When products are packaged for freezing, their journey as a vulnerable soft and malleable leaf, berry or stem halts as they are frozen to protect and preserve. The loss of nutrients is also halted. Many frozen veggies can be cooked from frozen so the journey appears to not have the same nutrient loss as fresh veg does.

Should I choose Organic?

Every year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) releases a comprehensive “Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides” known as the the Dirty Dozen. This list contains the top twelve fruits and veggies found to be most pesticide-contaminated (and most at-risk for pesticide contamination) based on the latest research. Essentially, these are the foods you want to buy organic whenever possible. According to the EWG, the crops and produce treated with the highest volume and variety of pesticides are as follows:

It isn’t all bad news, they also produce a list of the cleanest foods – these ones are not quite so grubby and can be enjoyed organic or not!

Organic shopping can be expensive. There needs to be a balance between good wholesome food, budget, tastes, lifestyle needs and family requirements. You may have opportunity to grow your own, or rely wholly on getting good quality food from shops and markets.

These handy lists help you make the choice that is right for you.

Food glorious food!

We have compiled a few of our favourite recipes below to showcase these delicious nutrient rich veggies to make sure you pack a punch in flavour as well as goodness.

Slice a large cauliflower head into approx 1/2 cm ‘steaks’. Drizzle the steaks with olive oil and sprinkle ground turmeric over both sides. Add some cumin seeds, salt and pepper and roast on a medium heat for 30 minutes. Can be eaten from the oven or once cooled.

Add some Lemon and Tahini dipping sauce for some extra vavavoom….Take 3 tablespoons of tahini, the juice of one lemon, 150g of coconut yoghurt, a dash of almond milk and a pinch of salt. Mix until smooth.

Roast some tender stem broccoli on a low heat with a drizzle of sesame seed oil. Turn off the heat before they go soft/burn to the tray. Pour a little tamari sauce over the stems and sprinkle with a handful of pine nuts. You can add garlic into the mix too when grilling for a little more depth of flavour. Serve whole with baby potatoes and grilled chicken breast, or chop and add to pasta. Also delicious cold and sliced in a wrap with baby plum tomatoes and houmous.

Create a delightfully colourful dish of leafy greens (spinach and kale) with red onion, carrot batons, cucumber slices and avocado. Heap with fresh grated beetroot. All raw, crunchy and full of goodness.

Take a big pile of kale, some olive or avocado oil and some Himalayan Pink Salt. Wash & drain the kale and remove stalks by tearing the leaf off the stalk. Place it on an oven tray and pour over olive or avocado oil. Season with Himalayan Pink Salt. Add the tray into the oven at 130C degrees for 10 minutes. Then open the oven, stir it through and add it for another 5 minutes. Keep checking & stirring it every couple of minutes until all crispy but not burnt.